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Friday, 10 February 2012

Opportunist Ed torpedoes his own jobs plan

The Labour Leader Ed Miliband made a speech bashing bankers bonuses last night stating: “Some argue that it is no business of the public what bonuses banks pay," Mr Miliband went on saying. “I fundamentally disagree, because even banks which are not publicly owned implicitly benefit from a taxpayer guarantee, to the tune of billions of pounds.”

So Mr Miliband not content with going after Stephen Hester's bonus, despite being in the government that signed off on the contract to give Mr Hester that bonus, Mr Miliband is chasing up all bankers bonuses and wants them stopped. Mr Miliband who has been successfully bandwagon jumping on bankers bonuses appears to of forgotten one major policy of his own.

Labour's five point plan for jobs and growth includes at number one on the list: A £2,000,000,000 tax on bankers bonuses to fund 100,000 jobs. Their website helpfully saying the jobs would be "for young people - which they would be required to take up - and build 25,000 more affordable homes".

Only problem is, that with Mr Miliband's opportunistic bandwagon jumping over banker's bonuses is blowing apart his own policy as if he is successful in getting banker's bonuses stopped then he would have nothing to tax and wouldn't be able to deliver on his five point for jobs and growth as the first point could not be funded.

Mr Miliband may believe that he is doing the right thing on banker's bonuses and in the short term it may give him a little breathing space before he's challenged for the Labour leadership but all he is doing in the long term is showing he and the Labour party have no economic credibility at all.